Salmonella outbreak sickens 7

Vernon Hills eatery closes voluntarily

An outbreak of salmonella poisoning has sickened at least seven people and prompted a Vernon Hills restaurant to close temporarily, Lake County health officials said Wednesday.

Chili's Grill & Bar, 567 E. Town Line Rd., voluntarily closed Tuesday and will not reopen until tests show its employees are free of the salmonella bacteria, said Dale Galassie, executive director of the Lake County Health Department.

Five of the seven people who suffered salmonellosis were hospitalized, although none of the cases appears to be life-threatening, said Leslie Piotrowski, a spokeswoman for the Health Department.

Galassie said the disease likely came from a food product or a person's hands.

Health officials said they are investigating whether the outbreak originated in the restaurant. Galassie said his department expects to determine the source by Thursday.

Salmonella bacteria live in the intestines of humans and animals, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. People usually get the bacteria by eating food contaminated with animal feces or food handled by someone whose hands were not thoroughly washed.

Those who come in contact with salmonella bacteria can experience diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps. Symptoms generally appear within 12 to 36 hours of infection, and a person can remain contagious for several weeks, officials said.

Two employees from the Chili's restaurant also work at other restaurants in Vernon Hills and Gurnee, Galassie said. Health officials have contacted those two restaurants, which he declined to identify.

Health officials said they became aware of the outbreak Monday after a customer became ill after eating at Chili's on June 26.

The 72 employees at the Vernon Hills Chili's are being tested for salmonella, Galassie said.

On Wednesday, the parking lot at the restaurant was empty, blinds were shut and a sign on the door read: "We are temporarily closed for an employee training session. We apologize for the inconvenience and hope to see you soon."

Chili's parent company, Brinker International in Dallas, issued a statement Wednesday saying that as soon as the restaurant found out about the outbreak, company representatives began working with health officials.

The Health Department has notified doctors in Lake County to be on the lookout for people with symptoms, Galassie said.

"Anyone who has eaten there since June 23 and who has experienced the symptoms should see their physician so we can stop a secondary spread of the disease," he said.

Earlier this year, a salmonella outbreak at a Libertyville nursing home sickened 34 people, Piotrowski said. In 2002, there were 99 reported cases of salmonella in Lake County, she said. In 2001, 87 cases of salmonella were reported countywide, she said.

Officials said people with questions about the outbreak can call the Health Department's Communicable Disease Program at 847-377-8130.